Last night, the Under-14 through Under-15 Boys and Girls National Championships were played in addition to the 77th annual James P. McGuire Cup televised nationally on FOX Soccer.
Notes from Sunday's games...

Under-16 Girls
BRYC 95 Elite (VA) claimed the Under-16 Girls National Championship 1-0 over MVLA Lightning (CA-N), becoming the first team to score on the Californians this week and upending MVLA’s hopes to regain the championship they won in 2010. Adrienne Maday scored the game winning goal in the 71st minute, joining teammate Kahla Seymour in a five-way tie for the scoring lead. BRYC came full circle this season, capturing state, regional and national titles after a last place finish in the National League.

Under-17 Girls
VSA Heat Blue (VA) put on a dominating performance in the Under-17 Girls championship game, defeating Legends FC 94 (CA-S), 6-0. The two National League foes battled to a 0-0 draw during league play, with Legends claiming the league title in the end. But VSA could do no wrong today as they took a 3-0 lead within the first 11 minutes and never looked back. After a Legends own goal in the 5th minute, Ashley Herndon (James Madison) struck in the 9th and 11th minutes to move her total to four on the week and take top scoring honors. Daniela Neves (West Virginia) added a fourth in the 33rd and Vanessa Kovar (South Carolina) and Lindsay Egbers (Richmond) tallied two minutes apart in the second half to complete the scoring for VSA.

Under-18 Girls
FC Pennsylvania Strikers (E-PA) completed a trophy sweep this season, claiming titles in state cup, Region I Premier League, Region I Championships, National League and now the National Championships after they broke open a tight game versus Brentwood SC 94 Premier (TN) to win 6-0. Daija Griffin (South Carolina) led FC Penn with a brace to become the leading scorer in the division with four goals on the week with strikes in the 17th and 80th. Cheyenne Spade (North Carolina State) opened the scoring in the 9th minute and completed her double in the 77th, while Gina DiTaranto (Delaware) and Stevi Parker (South Carolina) added second half goals.

Under-19 Girls
CCSC Sol (FL) took home the Under-19 Girls championship after a 2-1 shootout victory over Scorpions Elite (MA). Regulation ended 0-0 but overtime saw plenty of drama as Theresa Diederich (Alabama) converted a penalty kick in the 18th minute of extra time for Sol, only to have Scorpions equalize four minutes later from Jessica Clinton (Georgetown). The game was decided in a penalty shootout where Sol prevailed 6-5. Sol keeper Kylie Wilson (West Florida) saved Scorpions’ second penalty attempt and Rachel Buffalo (Mercer) scored on the 7th attempt before Scorpions last shooter struck the post to deliver Sol the title.

Under-16 Boys
Michigan Jaguars claimed the U-16 Boys Larry Harmon Cup with a 2-0 victory over CESA 95 Premier (SC) Sunday. The Jaguars had their sights set on this title game since they fell 3-1 to Chicago Fire Jrs (IL) in the 2011 final. Much like the 2011 game, the Jaguars got on the board early, as Nathan McLean pounced on a knock down off his team’s long throw in the box to notch a 1-0 lead. Late in the game, CESA looked to equalize with numerous threatening opportunities and earning free kicks in the attacking third. However, CESA was unable to capitalize in front of a large South Carolina crowd and Jaguars’ Jason Carmack slotted home a goal off a counter attack in the 79th minute to secure the win and the championship. The Jaguars won every single game in their run to the regional and national championship.

Under-17 Boys
In a battle between two Illinois rivals and National League competitors, Galaxy 94/94 Blue (IL) beat Raiders FC Premier (IL) 4-1 to raise the Don Greer Cup. Patrick Flynn recorded a first half brace to give Galaxy a 2-0 lead at half. Raiders FC pulled one back thanks to Joel Leon in the 62nd minute and continued to press for an equalizer. With numbers committed forward, Raiders was left exposed at the back and Galaxy added late goals by Byron Perez and Madisen Gonzalez to secure the win.

Under-18 Boys
In 2011, Florida Rush Nike (FL) felt like they were casual observers in their first trip to the US Youth Soccer National Championships. This year, they claimed the U-18 Boys national title, defeating defending champs Grand Rapids Crew Jrs (MI) in the final, 2-1. Grand Rapids’ quest to repeat looked on track in the 12th minute as Charles Constantino (Butler) collected a driven cross and buried his shot far post. That lead held until the 78th minute as Jeremy Tilley ran onto a ball over the top and slotted his effort past the oncoming Grand Rapids keeper Chase Rau (Wisconsin) for the equalizer. For the second year in a row, Grand Rapids conceded a late equalizer to force overtime in the title game. But the repeat was not meant to be, as Jean Rivaroli (North Florida) converted a penalty kick just six minutes into the first overtime period to give Florida Rush the national championship.